The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1887-08-28
4 mrr OF FREE LuscuEs.
NsRufsr and Peculiar Saturday Might Duty
sr the Citisens OF RsadinG.

4 CTrT OF FREE LUrCHEa
R.sur.r and Peculiar Saturday Niaht Duty
ef the Citissns OF Rsadiss.
READING, Pa, Aug. T.-The law-abldlng
and loyal citizens OF the various big towns OF
this part Of Psnnsylvania have regular and
imperative duties to perform. These duties
arc different In different towns, but they are
never shirksd or compromised. For instance.
In Harrisburg It In the law-abidinR and loyal
eitissn's duty to cat sauerkraut on "Wednesday
aAd 10 oppose with all his might tho paving Of
the city's streets on overy day Of the week. In
Lancaster the chief end Of man is to vote for
the Hon. John A. Heistand for member Of Con-
gross arst. last. and all the time In Pottsville
It is tho citizens sacred duty to let Chief
Clerk of tho House Sam Losch. Repub-
lican boss. run things his own way
In a Democratic county. and to ask
Quartcrmaster Ben McCool OF the dandy
Eighth to sing CLARA Nolans Ball" rs many
limos az he is met In Reading. after Impress
ing 1t upon the stranger as soon as he arrives
in town that Reading has 10000 population.
and Is sure to have 100000 when the LIST OF
January. 1890, kicks 1889 out among the has
beens the fealty Of tho citizen to his traditions
is made manifest every Saturday evening on
his starting out Immediately after supper to
seek the multifarious haunt OF the Reading
froe lunch. He don't enter the free lunchs
lair for the sake OF eating the lunch. He ID
he eats. and Tor I'll that his friends can
but the following OF the trail p the free lunch
on a, Saturday might 10 Heading 10 custom
that has boon handed down from sirs to son
II he failed, even for ono Saturday night, to
gather ' gpeas a store Of srstuitous ysnds and
trod.net necessarily tor ~ put as "a
" OF his forefal hers, and OF his own utter con
tempt for composite indigestion and inevitable
TIe Headnr Saturday night free lunch dates
back to the earliest days OF this part OF the
yssy Tsss srs h ees
6egan to Kalamazoo and all points West.
s South and srs"ay eppea
parent trunk at Heading. The Reading lunch
Is not festive banquet q ten courses ana d ca.s
not swim In rich mayonaise on te board. nor
does the head Of sucking pig, with no specp-
ssrs al ps Gy yem china
ter. No waiter in dress suit passes around
70 the SS p9BpHE 81 rse
Reading Is the only town n the world whS,ss
money e1 systematically to adysr,is. the fact
that they are in the habit Of setting out .
where eSysrSody Il syr mi ri
being classified with that large COSMOPOLITAN
and economical class Of mortals known TO fame
afterno s ons Of the oSsnins papers Of Reading
contains q solid column OF short cards. SGT In
Rs the ron
before me. In It are sixty and odd q these
HunarS or Tor Who
Th ds.n this hs oy up ana S
the coImn, headed Lunches" He cons that
such dispensers Of good cheer as the published
character OF their spread and the size of their
bsss he
loyal Reading citizen. It is. in a measure.
within their gates. 1t is also enigma ical. Note
tho UNDERGONE OF mystery pervadlns the 1oilow-
ing. culled at random from the column:
NTotIENRY, At THE COLUMBIA HOUSE, WILL BET
good side dishes also bully cool beer and bully hne
BECKER A. THE eaSEsAL sEYsoLps
cool seo be sas and sH nns ,qu @" 'a' "'
With the exception Of ono other mysterious
''nobby lunch, the sixty remaining dispensers
OF hospitality leave tho public In no suspense
as to what is to be expected when the lhy-Out
is dished up. Twenty out OF the q xty would
seem to leave the inference to be drawn that
there is n suspicion that q Dutchman or two
Il lurking In or about Reading, for the twenty
announcements assert that twenty separate
but uniformly "supsrflne sauerkraut, pork
and mashed potato lunches " Will be served
that night, while five other caterers strengthen
the suspicion by DECLARING In most positive
terms that they will each shove out q fine
Frankfort sausage and potato falad lunch; !"
The rast OF the Saturday night menu Is
varied by choice ham sandwich lunches. fine
chicken. noodle soup lunches famous coo.ile-
neck lunches. coodleneck and oyster lunches.
coodlefleck and onion lun, hes-coodlefeck hs-
Ing Pennsylvania Dutch for tripe vegetable
mock turtle corn. cucumber. and clam soup
lunches. clam fritter lunches. apple and sweet
other lunches, each with extra side dishes. all
the trimmings, good music BY tho band and
schooners OF ice cold beer. One caterer OF tho
gentler sex varies the monotony Of lunches by
announcing that she gives q good cigar with
every drink"
over the Heading lunch route. and three days
to get over tho getting over it. No matter 1t
what stopping place the pilgrim may be along
the route, at s minutes OF IL the proprietor
calls the attention OF all present to the i'm
placahle fact that In five minutes the feStivi-
ties will cease and the hose be turned on. At
~ o'clock the loyal and law-abiding Citizen
who has sat at the feast turns his face home
ward. His conscience Is easy. His duty has
haen done